Through My Eyes: a Blue Nuzlocke
by diabeticgirl4
Summary: A nuzlocke for Pokemon Blue- all written from a pokemon's pov. Don't know what a nuzlocke is? Explanation and  rules are inside!
1. Rules and Prologue

Hey there, Diabeticgirl4 here! I'm putting all my other stories on hold (sorry!) to do this nuzlocke, so I hope you enjoy it!

What's a nuzlocke, you say? You can visit **nuzlocke(dot)com** to find out, but basically it's a way of playing Pokemon games differently. Normally there are two rules: catch only the first Pokemon in each new area, and if it faints- it's considered "dead". Usually you name all the Pokemon also. This is my run, so I'm adding more rules and doing it how I like.

If you're on the nuzlocke forums, I'm posting this story there, too! I put the link in my profile if you're interested. :)

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><p><span>Rules for game:<span>

1. If a Pokémon faints, it's considered dead. Perm box it.

2. Name it.

3. No revive (obviously), repel, escape rope, or rare candy.

4. Only catch the first Pokémon encountered in each route/area [according to the map]. If it's a duplicate, it faints, uses whirlwind/roar, etc., deal with it. [note: gift Pokémon, i.e. the starter in Pallet or Eevee in Celadon, count for those areas]  
>-Fishing is included in the rule<p>

5. No running from battle [exception: if the continuation of battle would result in the death of one or more Pokémon- e.g. if a Pokémon has low HP, no potions, and no nearby pokecenters]

6. Legendaries are counted as "normal" Pokémon- they can be captured as long as they are the first Pokémon found in that area [which is basically impossible].

only continue after a Blackout if:  
>-Have extra Pokémon stored in the Box that aren't dead<br>-The Pokecenter I am transported to is accessible w/o pokemon  
>(e.g. if Blackout occurs in Seafoam Islands, continuation would be impossible due to the Surfing Pokémon's death. If the Pokecenter transported to is in a different town due to a pokemon Flying, continuation would be impossible.)<p>

Rules for writing:

1. Only write from a Pokémon's perspective. Changed Pokémon POVs are expected.

* * *

><p><em>Being inside a pok<em>_é__ball is an odd experience. It is not comfortable, nor is it painful. Rather, you don't _feel_ anything. It's like you're floating within your consciousness- like in a dream of sorts. You can't move, feel, or see anything. Bu, you can hear things in the outside world. And that, just that is what keeps you from going insane in that world._

* * *

><p>Hi! I'm Charmander. I'm kept at the large laboratory building in Pallet Town, with two other Pokémon (more about them later), Professor Oak, and his busy aides. Most of the time I am left inside my pokéball on hours at end while Oak is away, but I don't mind. It's somewhat relaxing, doing nothing but listening to the constant chattering among the assistants about the latest pokédex glitches or newest TM findings.<p>

I don't mind the simple life, but at times I find myself wishing for something more- freedom, adventure, or at least a little excitement now and then. I long to see the open sky and the rustling grass around me. So when Oak released the three of us from our pokéballs and notified us that some new trainers would come by to pick out a starter Pokémon for themselves, a great excitement burned within me, brighter than the fire on the tip of my tail.

What would the future hold? Would I, the energetic and brave Charmander, be chosen over the loud and boisterous Squirtle or the quiet and kind Bulbasaur? What would the trainers be like? Young or old, sincere or unpleasant? Would I be chosen to share an exciting adventure with this person, or would I be put aside to wait for the next trainer to want me?

"What are you hoping you'll get?" I asked the Bulbasaur beside me. He looked thoughtful, but then smiled.

"I don't want much, I suppose. I just want a nice trainer to take me wherever they go, and as long as they are happy, I'll be happy," he said in a soft and satisfied tone.

"Bah, that sounds boring!" exclaimed the Squirtle. I suppressed the urge to growl at him; if I had wanted his opinion, I would have asked for it. "I want to train to become strong and be better than all the Pokémon in all of Kanto," he continued. I sighed, and ignored the rest of what the Squirtle kept babbling about. He wasn't mean, thankfully, but he had a competitive nature that made it rather annoying whenever he felt the need to one-up somebody.

"What about you, Charmander? What are your dreams?" asked the curious Bulbasaur.

"I… I want to venture far across the land, to see everything there is to see. I want to meet all sorts of Pokémon, and to test my strength in battles. I guess I just want to have a fun, exciting life," I admitted.

Before the Bulbasaur could respond, Professor Oak came strolling into view.

"Boy, aren't you fellows talkative," he chuckled. "I sure do wish I could understand what you were talking about. Perhaps that could be the next big invention: a Human to Pokémon translator…" He then turned to his large filing cabinet and began whistling a tune to himself.

"I do find it silly," whispered the Bulbasaur, "that we Pokémon can understand human speech easily, yet humans are too dense to understand even the simplest of things we have to say." I nodded, and even the Squirtle wouldn't disagree.

Suddenly, Oak stopped whistling. "Oh, is it nearly 2 o'clock already? The kids will be here any minute. Sorry, but you guys need to go back into your pokéballs," he told us. I looked at the front door then back at Oak, and then I was sucked into the emptiness of the pokéball.


	2. Chapter 1

How long did Oak leave the lab in silence? A couple minutes? An hour? Finally, I heard the door open and a voice enter the room. It wasn't Professor Oak's voice, but I still recognized it, to my dismay.

"Hey gramps, where are you? What did you want me for?"

It was his grandson, Gary Oak. Like how Squirtle tended to irritate me, Gary never ceased to get on my nerves. When I met Gary for the first time, he was younger and more ignorant than he was now. He thought it'd be fun to pull my tail, and I thought it'd be fun to bite him in return. We've never been on good terms with each other.

"Gramps? Hey, you told me to come here, where are you? Oh hey, he left the pokéballs out…"

The door suddenly opened, and Oak's voice echoed throughout the room.

"…You know that it's dangerous to go out on that route alone. You're lucky I found you before a wild Pokémon did."

A soft girl's voice, one I had never heard before, mumbled back. "I-I wasn't… I mean, I was just-"

"Oh, Gary, you're here!" cried Oak, cutting her off. "Great, you're both here. I have something for both of you."

I was suddenly released from my pokéball, and I realized Squirtle and Bulbasaur were freed as well.

I looked to see Gary Oak and a young girl standing next to each other. _She must be who I was hearing,_ I realized. The girl was slightly smaller than Gary, had long, sandy brown hair and blue eyes, and appeared a couple years younger than him. She had a sad look on her face, one that reminded me of how Bulbasaur looked whenever he was bullied or teased by Squirtle.

"Now, Grace," said Oak, "you know what this is about, right? It's time that you start your Pokémon adventure. Go on, you can pick your very own Pokémon!"

Suddenly, I was nervous. Would she pick me? I glanced at Bulbasaur and Squirtle- Bulbasaur was fidgeting nervously, and Squirtle was clearly judging the poor girl.

I made eye contact with the girl- Grace was her name?- and her eyes lit up immediately.

"I choose this one," she announced. A slight smile blossomed on her face.

"Fine, I choose Squirtle," Gary said with a smirk. _They'll get along with each other perfectly,_ I grimaced.

"Hey Bulbasaur," I said, "sorry about you not getting picked." I expected him to be disappointed, but if he was, he didn't show it.

"That's okay Charmander, I'm happy for you. Both of you, really. I just hope you have a fun time," he said with a smile.

I smiled back. Bulbasaur was so kind. I would miss having him around.

"Now that you both have your Pokémon, do you want to name them?" Oak then asked Gary and Grace.

"I'll call you Jakob," Grace told me in a satisfied tone. _Jakob_. I liked that name.

"Ha," Gary sneered. "Nicknames are for losers. Isn't that right, _Grace the Disgrace_?"

I cautioned him with a growl. _No way was he going to treat my new trainer like that._ I looked at Grace, expecting her to counter back, but she didn't respond. Instead, her smile faded, leaving her with a dejected look on her face.

"Hey, I bet I can beat you in a battle," Gary continued. "We already know there's no way you're going to win, so you might as well cough up your savings now."

"Hey Squirtle," I snarled, "your trainer's a jerk."

"Hmph, well your trainer's weak," Squirtle scoffed.

I didn't wait for Grace's command. I launched myself at Squirtle, knocking him down.

"Your trainer," _scratch _"isn't the only one," _scratch _"that needs," _scratch_ "an attitude adjustment," I cried out between scratches.

Squirtle shoved me back, hurling insults back at me. "Your trainer will keep you weak, you know. You'll never be as good as me. I always have and I always will be better."

"You don't know me!" I yelled. I was tired of him always putting us down, and this was the last straw. I tackled him one last time and held my sharp claws against his throat, daring him to make a move. "Go on, Squirtle, admit it. I beat you," I growled.

He didn't reply, but simply glared back in defeat.

"Darn it, I picked the wrong Pokémon. You just got lucky this time," Gary grumbled. He returned Squirtle to his pokéball and shrugged.

"Well, I'm out of here. I need to train and get better. Later, Gramps. Smell ya later, _Dis_Grace."

I looked back at Grace, who had tears in her eyes and a dazed look on her face. I sighed. _She definitely needs to toughen up if we're going to stand up to those bullies again,_ I thought. I gently took her hand, and led her out of the lab.

"Good luck on your journey, Grace. Don't let my grandson get you down; he still has a lot to learn. Just be strong, and don't let anything stop you," Professor Oak called out with a smile.

Grace and I both nodded, and walked out to face our new adventure together.

* * *

><p>AN: a little shorter than I imagined, but I had issues with the game and had to change plans a bit... anyways, hope you enjoy!


	3. Chapter 2

"...Hey kid, I don't recognize you from around here. You from Pallet Town? Care to take this to Professor Oak?"

We had just reached Viridian City- a short walk from Pallet Town- to check out their pokécenter and pokémart. We needed to stock up on supplies, since we already began to face an onslaught of pidgeys and rattatas on the first route. They were all pretty weak, except for one determined pidgey that left me winded. Grace gave me a potion, despite me trying to tell her to save it for a more important time.

But no, the Viridian pokémart worker was convinced that we absolutely needed to deliver a special package back to Oak before he could sell us anything. Even after asking, he claimed it was very urgent and long overdue.

"Come on, we were just there! Why can't Oak pick up his own stuff?" I grumbled. Now we had to walk all the way back to Pallet Town, then _all_ the way back to Viridian City again, all without any important supplies from the pokémart.

"You know, Jakob, I'm glad I have you around," Grace said. I looked up at her, surprised at her sudden talking. "I've always been alone, and it's nice to have someone to talk to for once," she continued calmly. "I've never been outside of Pallet Town, either. I didn't want to leave, really, but Mom said I had to. She said Gary would be leaving soon, and I should too.

"Gary's a jerk, but I'm sure you figured that out already. He's always been like that. He and his sister, Daisy, have always lived with Professor Oak since their parents ended up moving somewhere else. I've never met them, and nobody ever talks about them. My mom used to babysit Gary a lot whenever Professor Oak and Daisy were busy, and she thought we should be best friends. Gary didn't think so. He never wanted anything to do with me," she laughed bitterly.

Her eyes grew distant, and she remained silent until we reached Pallet Town. She sighed, and I held onto her free hand. "I'm glad you're talking to me, Grace. I'll always listen to you, and... I like your voice, too." I knew she wouldn't understand me, but I was hoping she'd at least grasp the meaning.

She smiled, and I knew she did.

Finally, we reached Oak's lab.

"Hey Professor Oak, I brought something- Gary? Wh-what are you doing here?" Grace called out.

"Ugh, why is the loser here-"

"Gary, what have I told you? Grace, it's a good thing you came here," Oak said. "Oh, you brought something for me? Thanks, just put it on the table. Now, what I was going to say- I think both of you are ready for my new product I've been working on: the pokédex. It records data..."

_Blah, blah, blah. _I knew everything about the pokédex already, thanks to being holed up in the lab day after day. I've already listened to his entire process of creating the idea, building the machine, his mission, everything.

"I hate to say it Grace, but I don't need you! I'll beat all the gym leaders and become champion of Kanto, then complete the entire pokédex, and you can just stay out of my way. I'm gonna snag a map from my sister first, and tell her not to give you one. Smell ya later, Grace!"

I sighed in relief as Gary left peacefully, or at least without a battle. Grace looked indifferent, but I knew she'd feel hurt from his comment.

"Thank you, Professor Oak!" Grace said as she waved him goodbye.

_See ya Oak, hopefully this will be the last time, _I thought. I was ready to officially start this journey- to travel new places, meet new friends, train and grow stronger... I was sick of this town.

"Oh, I should probably say goodbye to Daisy, I forgot to last time. Thankfully she's much nicer than her brother," Grace said.

Argh_. Fine._

...Daisy _was_ nice. How come Gary couldn't be more like her? She even gave Grace her only remaining town map, despite Gary's earlier threat.

Then, _finally, _we were en route to Viridian City again.

_About time._

"Sorry kid, we're not recruiting yet. Now get outta here," I told the hopeful little rattata.

"It is a shame that you don't have any pokéballs yet," I said offhandedly to Grace. "This place is full of other pokémon that could help us out on this journey. Since, you know, I won't be able to do this all alone."

"Don't worry, Jakob, we're almost back to Viridian City. We'll visit the pokécenter, and then I'll get you more potions and finally get some pokéballs. "

"I don't need-argh. Never mind..."

The whole walk went like that. Pidgeys or rattatas would test their skills against me, and the ones that didn't run away were disappointed when I told them they couldn't train alongside me. Grace probably didn't realize the importance of recruiting pokémon, but we'd need to have a strong team if we were going to prove ourselves against other trainers. _Especially the gym leaders and Gary... _

For the second time that day, we entered Viridian City. Then, finally, Grace went ahead and bought some pokéballs.

"Alright, now we can finally check out this grassy area and- Grace?" I looked around and saw that Grace was politely conversing with an old man, rather than searching in the grassy areas for new teammates. He was saying something about catching a pokémon, and I sighed.

"We don't have time for this," I grumbled. Still, I walked over and waited for the old man to finish his speech.

"See, catching pokémon is the easiest thing out there," he said. "Now, young girl, I can tell just by talking with you that you have the makings of being a great pokémon trainer. Not like that rude punk that passed by earlier, _bah._ No, you have the heart, I can tell..."

He kept rambling on, and Grace continued to listen patiently. I sighed in frustration.

"Great. While you, uh, finish story time with Grandpa over there, I'll search for some recruits in the grassy areas. In case you care to join me some time."

She seemed to acknowledge me, but was too polite to interrupt the old man.

I rolled my eyes and wandered into the nearby grass where it was the tallest and darkest. I shivered. It felt kind of sinister, as if all the wild pokémon were there, watching my every move.

One of them was.

"Hey, you think you're good enough to enter my domain?" a voice yelled, just before I was knocked flat to the ground.

Instinct and adrenaline kicked in, and I kicked my opponent back so I could face him fairly. He was a small rattata, but he had a fierce look in his eyes- he clearly wasn't going down without a fight.

"Whatsa matter," he sneered. "Scared? You should be. I'm the strongest rattata in this area. No one dares to cross my path unless they want a fight."

"Ha, scared?" I laughed. "Nah, I'm just sizing you up. You know, to see if you'll be good enough." This infuriated the rattata.

"Why you...!" he hissed. He tackled me again, but I was prepared. In just a few seconds I had him pinned to the ground.

"What do you want?" he grumbled in defeat

"No, no, you've got it wrong. It's not what I want- it's what you want," I stated. The rattata continued glaring at me, but allowed me to continue.

"I can tell you that you're not gonna get stronger staying around here," I told him. "You say you're the strongest here, so how will you get even stronger? You'll want to come with us. Travel, train, and you'll get to see how strong you can really be. You're just a weakling now, but you've got potential."

A shadow appeared behind us, and I grinned: Grace had arrived.

"Jakob, there you are. Oh, and you've found a rattata!" she gasped.

"Yeah, which means you can hurry up and throw that pokéball!"

Grace fumbled around with her bag before retrieving a pokéball. The rattata squirmed beneath me, realizing what was going to happen.

"Come on, that's your trainer? She looks pathetic, there's no way I'm going to-" but the pokéball had been thrown, and the rattata was captured. _Phew._

"I... I did it! I caught the rattata!" Grace cried out. She laughed happily, and I congratulated her.

"Way to go, Grace! That was perfect."

Grace released the rattata from the pokéball, and I was glad to see that his earlier ferocity was already beginning to fade. He didn't look too terribly thrilled with the idea of having Grace as a trainer, though.

"You're my first pokémon I've caught," Grace told him. "I'm going to call you Damian, okay? I'm Grace, and this is Jakob," she said, pointing at me. The rattata, now Damian, sighed.

"Well, I guess I'm caught now," he said. "I'm keeping your word on helping me get stronger, or else I'm going back to my place."

"Fine, but you'd better be ready for anything we face on this journey. You're now an important member on this team, got it?"

Damian shrugged, but seemed compliant to my words.

"So, tell me about this girl. She doesn't seem like the normal trainer-types that occasionally pass by," he said.

"Yeah, she just..." I struggled to find the right words. "She needs help, I guess. I mean, I haven't been with her for very long, but I can tell she needs more confidence and faith in herself. It's a good thing she's become a trainer, it's a step in the right direction at least."

"Mmhmm. Well she better toughen up, or she'll never survive in this world. I've heard that the life of a trainer isn't very forgiving for weaklings like her."

"Well, my goal is to fix that. She's got potential-"

"She just needs to find it," Damian finished, and I nodded. "I'll help, but only because this journey wouldn't be very fun if she stayed a boring weakling," he said, grinning.

"Now come on, I wanna go train. I'll beat ya to the next grassy field!" he yelled in excitement. He then sprinted off ahead.

_Sheesh, he's going to be a handful_, I thought. _But he's also going to be a good team member._

"Come on Grace, you heard him. Let's go train!" I ran after Damian, leaving Grace to catch up with us.


	4. Chapter 3

Man, Jakob was right. This life of training and battling is awesome compared to my old life. Everybody in my grassy field knew- and feared- me, so I was left alone most of the time. However, nobody knew me here. They just thought I was some weakling of a rattata that would never put up a fight to anyone. It was kinda refreshing, actually.

"That's right, you fly away! I ain't so weak now, am I?" I yelled at a fleeing pidgey. Poor guy didn't expect me to fight back and couldn't take my power.

"I hate it when they underestimate me," I muttered.

"Maybe you should take a break? You've been training for a long time. Here, I'll take over and give you a break," Jakob offered.

"Pssh, this ain't nothin'. Besides, I finally stopped having to depend on you for back-up in fights. It feels great, getting stronger."

Jakob sighed. "Yes, but you shouldn't overdo it. I know you want to catch up to me, but I'm here to help out if things get too tough."

I rolled my eyes. I hated when Jakob tried to parent me. Yes, I was the "newb" of the team and not as strong as him (I'm catching up though!), but he didn't need to watch over me all the time. I've always been a solitary rattata, and I've always been fine like that.

Grace wasn't much better. She didn't do much, just wander around besides us while we trained. She'd usually praise us, and occasionally I'd hear her fretting about gyms or some guy named Gary, but usually she was pretty quiet. She was too soft, too pathetic to be a real trainer. I hated it.

"Hey, I seem to have scared off everyone in this area, wanna move on to the next area?" I asked Jakob. He shrugged, so I went on ahead. Grace followed shortly behind us.

I stopped and breathed in the fresh air. Swirling scents of various pokémon filled the air. I smiled and took a deep breath.

"Alright, who thinks they're strong enough to take on me, Damian of the rattatas? Come on, do your worst!" I yelled out.

"Damian, that's no way to practice fighting," Jakob sighed. "You're just scaring away-"

"I accept your challenge!" a voice interrupted. A figure- a female rattata with a confident look in her eyes- walked out of the grass and confronted me. "I'll take you on."

"Pssh, I won't go easy just 'cause you're a girl," I grinned. She glared at me.

"Don't worry, I won't go easy on you either, just because you're really small and pitiful looking for a rattata," she spat back.

_That's it._

I rushed towards her, aiming to knock her off her feet. She stood there, calm and poised, and waited until I was a tail-length away until she hopped out of the way. She tackled me, but not hard enough to do any damage.

"Is that all you got?" I laughed. I gave her a swift bite at her neck, and she squealed. She kicked back, but I quickly recovered and tackled her to the ground.

"You're a feisty girl," I grinned. "Now all you have to do is admit defeat and I'll let you go," I told her smoothly.

"You jerk. I will never-"

But at that moment we were both interrupted by a bright red flash- a pokéball. It struck my opponent, and she instantly disappeared from underneath me. I turned to Jakob, who was smiling with calm relief beside Grace. Grace's expression was harder to tell. Was it relief? Pride? Worry? Fear? Whatever it was, it made me mad.

"Come on, I almost had her," I complained. Jakob shrugged.

"You should have known that we need to build our team in order to get stronger. You were a recruit too, you know. And she seemed to put up a decent fight, so I'd say she'll be a great addition to the team- don't you agree?"

"Hmmph."

Grace released the rattata from the pokéball and was talking to her the same way she did to me when I was caught.

_Welcome to the team, blah blah blah. I wonder how many times I'll hear that phrase._

I tuned out Grace's introduction, although my ears did perk when she announced the new arrival's name: Lynne. _What a boring name,_ I thought. _At least it's not a girly name; she's too tough for that. Lynne's okay._

"Hey jerk," Lynne said, interrupting my thoughts. "It's a shame that we're on the same side now, we can't finish that fight earlier to see who's truly better."

"Please," I scoffed, "did you hear yourself back there? Whining and squealing for me to stop? The real shame is you thinking you're all that when you can't even fight back. It really is a good thing you're part of the team, you definitely need the training."

"Hey, I wasn't-"

But we were interrupted yet again, this time by peacemaker Jakob.

"Seriously, guys. Damian, I know she's the newest member and all, but that doesn't mean she's worthless- remember, even the smallest pokémon can have the biggest potential. No hating. And Lynne, sorry to say, but you'll just have to learn to deal with Damian and not take him too seriously. Although what he did say is partially true- you will need plenty of training, but it's not necessarily a bad thing. Now, why don't you guys go blow off some steam and go train some more?" He shooed us off in opposite directions, but not before Lynne and I exchanged glares.

"Betcha I can train harder than you!" I taunted. Jakob sighed in frustration, but Lynne was already picking a fight with a stray pidgey. _That girl certainly has spunk_, I thought.

...

We finally entered Viridian Forest. Man, there was no shortage of thick grass to hide pokémon there. Everything was dark and green, and the air was filled with a constant buzzing that even I found a bit intimidating.

"Whatsa matter, scared?" Lynne teased. I rolled my eyes.

"Right... Now why don't you go and pick a fight or whatever. You still need a bunch of catching up if you want to get decent."

"We're also here for recruits, so be careful," Jakob reminded.

...But did that recruit have to be a stupid caterpie? She was a tiny little bug with huge eyes, dubbed as Rosie by Grace.

"Welcome to the team," Jakob said fondly.

"I... I know I'm kind of weak now, but... I really want to become stronger and useful for you guys," Rosie mumbled in return.

_Great, there's no way she's going to last long. Why, of all pokémon, did we have to get stuck with a weak caterpie..._

She proved her commitment though, volunteering to participate in battles- with help from us of course. She'd start the battles, and then Jakob, Lynne, or I would step in before Rosie could take damage. It was a good system, as we all gained much needed fighting experience.

"Hey Jakob," I called, "does Grace have any battle experience as a trainer?"

"Hmm? No, not really. I guess she fought against Gary, but that wasn't really a serious fight. Besides, it was more between me and Squirtle than her and Gary. Why?"

I noted to ask about Gary later. "Oh, she's about to have her first battle- hope she's ready," I said, nodding towards the approaching trainer. He was a short kid with a determined yet goofy look on his face. A weedle and a caterpie were perched on his shoulders.

"Hey, you have pokémon! Let's battle!" he cried. Grace shrank at his words, but Jakob stepped forward.

"Come on, Grace. There's no running away, so let's show them who's boss. She accepts!"

"...Jakob? Oh, okay, I can do this..." Grace stammered.

_We're toast,_ I thought. _Let's hope Grace is stronger than a couple bugs._

"Alright... Just like we've been doing: Rosie, you go out first, then let Jakob take over, okay?"

Rosie crawled forward with the fiercest expression a caterpie could have, and the opposing weedle faced her.

The weedle tackled her harshly, but Rosie held strong, returning with her own tackle. She quickly retreated out of harm's way, and Jakob took her place. The weedle took advantage of the switchover and rushed towards Jakob with its sharp horn. It made contact, and Jakob winced in pain.

"Poison, sonofa-"

"All's fair in a pokémon fight," the weedle laughed.

"All's fair, you say?" Jakob grinned. He took a deep breath, and _phwoosh_, released a jet of fire at the poor weedle. It was an instant KO; no bug could survive a fire that strong.

"You've been poisoned Jakob," Lynne told him, "I'll finish for you-"

"No. I got this," Jakob returned. "Don't worry, I'll be quick." At that, the opposing caterpie shrank in fear.

One quick ember later, the battle was over and the trainer admitted defeat. He tossed a handful of coins at Grace, but she was too distracted trying to find an antidote in her bag to notice.

"It's a good thing some idiot left their antidote laying around," I sighed. Lynne and Rosie both nodded, their eyes filled with worry.

Right after Jakob was healed, Rosie let out a soft gasp. I quickly looked at her, and stared as I realized she was glowing. She kept glowing brighter and brighter, until it became too bright to look. Then, just as she started glowing, she instantly stopped and we were able to look at her again.

Where Rosie previously was, sat a larger metapod.

"Rosie, you evolved!" Grace gasped.

"Good job, Rosie!" Jakob congratulated.

Rosie didn't say anything, but beamed with pride instead.

"What, can't speak in that form? Bummer," I chuckled.

Rosie glared at me, then hopped over before tackling me with all her weight.

"Arceus, you weigh a ton! Jeez!" I cried. Great, now both my shoulder _and_my ego would be bruised.

"Ha, serves you right," Lynne teased, and Jakob began coughing, presumably to cover his laughter.

"I'm so glad you evolved Rosie, but let's keep going. The sooner out of this creepy forest, the better," Grace shuddered, and Rosie and Lynne both nodded in agreement.

I didn't mind this place, yet I wasn't a big fan of all the bugs everywhere. They were always either boringly weak, or had an annoyingly strong defense to put up with. Either way, we didn't get much training experience from them. I was eager to face tougher opponents.

"Come on, you heard her. Let's head out so we can get some _real _training," I announced. Jakob huffed in disapproval, apparently not liking me taking over his leader role. I shrugged. "What? While I'm sure you're having a grand time being able to instantly fry all these bugs with your little fire breathing deal, Lynne and I can't get rid of all these stupid metapod with just our fangs. And Rosie here... Well, no offense, Rosie, but you're basically useless in that form."

We held gazes for a few more tense moments until Lynne and Rosie passed by us. Jakob finally went ahead to be by Grace's side, and I stayed near the rear to gather my thoughts.

_Focus, Damian. Let's not get on Jakob's bad side. You're not leader, he is. Let's just... stay out of the next few battles, let the others get their share of battle experience._

So that's what I did. It was boring and frustrating, but I watched the others take down their shares of caterpie, metapod, weedle, and kakuna in my place. We battled a few other trainers- they were all pretty easy thanks to Jakob, found a bunch of misplaced but useful items, and Rosie evolved yet again.

I admit- I was jealous of her fully evolved form. I longed to be a bigger, stronger raticate, but I knew it would take a long time before my evolution. Rosie was quick to show off her newly acquired wings and psychic powers- both powerful and impressive. She fluttered above us, humming softly while she practiced her new psychic attack on unsuspecting pokémon.

Finally, we entered Pewter City. While it wasn't much better than Viridian City, it did have a few key places we needed to visit- the pokécenter, pokémart, and the Pewter Gym. While I didn't know too much about the Pokémon League and everything, I knew that gyms were the best places to prove yourself in battle. Beat a gym leader, and you were proven to be tough competition.

"Hey Jakob, you should convince Grace to head to the gym. I don't care if she's not ready, but I am. Besides, unless she wants to stay like the pitiful weakling she is for the rest of her life, she's gonna have to do what we do- train to get stronger. It's not an easy thing to do, but it's effective."

"Damian's right," Rosie said. "I think if we can defeat the gym leader's pokémon, we can help give Grace the confidence she needs. She really has the potential to become a powerful trainer. She's smart with battle strategies and careful of our limits when we battle- not many other caterpie I know last long enough to evolve to their final forms, you know."

Jakob nodded in agreement. "Alright. I won't be of much use in this gym- I believe it's mostly rock pokémon, and my fire's pretty ineffective against them, so it'll be up to you guys. You guys feel ready for what's ahead?"

"I was born ready," I grinned, and Lynne and Rosie both nodded with confidence.

Jakob then tugged at Grace's hand and pointed towards the gym.

"The... The gym?" Grace stammered. "I don't know guys, maybe not yet... I-I don't know if you're ready yet, the gym leader's supposed to be really strong..."

"Grace, we've been training all day long. I know that the gym leaders are supposed to have the strongest pokémon around, but we're all ready," Lynne told her. I was frustrated that Grace wouldn't be able to understand her, but she finally sighed.

"Okay... We need to visit the pokécenter first, and I'd like to buy more potions with the money I have. Then we can go to the gym, promise."

We all cheered at Grace's answer.

_Finally! They better be ready for what's coming for them- 'cause little Damian's coming with all he's got!_


	5. Chapter 4

**four months later... an update. I'm not going to lie, I've been busy/stressed/unmotivated as heck...Lately I've been considering doing a different nuzlocke (in comic form instead), and I've been very tempted to stop writing this nuzlocke and draw the comic instead... which I'm trying not to do. I'm trying not to lose complete motivation on this nuzlocke, and any advice/suggestions/anything would be really appreciated. **

**Anyways, look- a gym battle appeared! Finally! Action! Yay! Um... Reviews would be extremely helpful and appreciated, especially since I'm not really sure what I'm doing anymore... ^^; I'll keep writing the next chapter for now, and I'll try not to have such a long hiatus this time. (No guarantees, seeing as school starts back up in a month... sorry!)**

* * *

><p>The doors to the gym open creaked open to the touch, and just like that, we were inside. It was quite an impressive building; the incredibly high ceiling made the building larger than it looked from the outside. It truly did live up to its name- everything was a dusty shade of dark gray, and it looked as if the entire gym were carved from a mountain. In fact, the walls looked like they would crumble at the lightest touch, which was worrisome.<p>

"Welcome to the Pewter Gym, I'm assuming you're here to challenge Brock. Is this your first time challenging a gym?" the gym official asked. Grace nodded nervously.

"The rules are pretty simple, and they are effective for all the gyms here in Kanto. You are only allowed to use up to the same amount of pokémon as the gym leader, but you can switch as many times needed. However, you must defeat the gym trainers first to prove your worth before you challenge the gym leader. Defeat the gym leader, and you receive a gym badge and a prize TM. If you continue to prove yourself as a strong trainer and obtain all eight badges, at that point you may travel to Indigo Plateau to challenge the Elite Four and the spot for Pokémon Champion. It's a difficult journey in which very few succeed, yet it's a fulfilling and rewarding challenge- personally, you'd be crazy not to try. Do you accept these rules for the Pokémon League?"

Grace took a deep breath and nodded. "I accept," she said.

"Great!" the official exclaimed. "You know, you're the second young trainer to come by today. A young gentleman challenged Brock earlier and was victorious rather quickly. Although he did have a pokémon with a type advantage, which made it a bit easier for him. By the looks of your team," he said, frowning at us, "I wish you good luck. You'll need it."

"I have a feeling he's talking about Gary," Jakob whispered.

_Gary? That name's been mentioned a few times, but... who exactly was Gary?_

"Gary this, Gary that... when are you going to _tell_ us what's so important about this Gary guy?" Damian complained.

"Look, I don't know the entire story," Jakob sighed, "but I'll tell you everything I do know later, okay?"

Damian grumbled something incoherently, and Lynne simply shrugged it off. I was as curious as Damian though, as I wished to understand Grace more. She reminded me of the shy caterpie and metapod back in the Viridian Forest- having the potential to be something beautiful and powerful, yet shielding herself away from others to stay in her weak form.

"There's the first trainer," Grace said nervously. "Are you ready, guys?"

"Of course we're ready," said Damian, rolling his eyes.

"It'll be alright, Grace, I'll take care of it." I told her. "Damian, Lynne, I feel confident on taking these big guys by myself, but be ready just in case." Lynne nodded, and Damian muttered something about wanting to show off.

"So you want to take on Brock? You'll have to go through me first" the trainer smirked. He wasn't much older than Grace, but he had an overconfident air about him, much like Damian.

"Go, diglett!"

"You... you can do this, Rosie!"

_You don't have to tell me,_ I thought.

Since my Confusion attack was recently perfected, that battle was a breeze. The sandshrew after that... was a bit more troublesome.

"Sandshrew, sand-attack!"

_Ugh, not again._

The sandshrew kept kicking up more and more dirt from the ground, and I couldn't see a darn _thing. _I kept trying to attack with Confusion, but no matter where I thought that sneaky sandshrew was, the attack never hit. My wings couldn't even clear up the dust, it was too thick.

"Hey Lynne, switch with me," I coughed. "I can't see anything..."

"Alright, I got this, Rosie."

I quickly flew out of harm's way to clear my eyes while Lynne rushed forward.

"Come on, Rosie, you totally had it," Damian teased.

"Hey, you try seeing when you've got loads of sand in your eyes!" I snapped back. "I just didn't want to risk anything, that's all. Besides, same thing would've happened to you."

"Nuh-uh, I woulda gone and destroyed that sandshrew before he even knew what was going on. You're too nice, Rosie."

"Cool it, Damian," Jakob warned, and Damian rolled his eyes in response. "Besides, looks like Lynne's already finished."

We all looked up, and indeed, Lynne was victorious in a matter of seconds.

"Wow, great job Rosie! You too, Lynne!" Grace praised. "Now we have to... face Brock..."

"Trust us, Grace, we've got this," Jakob said.

" 'We'? Sorry Jakob, but you're practically useless," Damian laughed. "In case you haven't noticed, fire doesn't do much here."

"Don't worry, I'll take care of it," I sighed.

"You sure?" Lynne asked. "You know we're here if you need us."

"And come on," Damian added, "you're a butterfree. Going against rock pokémon that aren't going to go easy on a dinky little thing like you-"

"I said," I huffed in annoyance, "I'll take care of it."

"Whatever, just don't expect me to come rescue you," Damian muttered.

Suddenly, a loud voice boomed throughout the building.

"Congratulations, trainer, you are now ready to fight me- Brock of Pewter Gym. Are you strong enough to stop my extreme defenses? Show me your best!"

Brock stood on top of a large boulder at the end of the gym. He looked intimidating, watching Grace with narrowed eyes and crossed arms. _Oh well, I'll just have to prove him how much better I am._

"I got this, Grace. Just trust me," I told her. I fluttered to the center of the gym arena to face Brock's geodude.

"Oh please, a butterfree? I was hoping for this to be a challenge, like that squirtle that just came by," the geodude frowned.

"You're right; this isn't going to be much of a challenge... for me anyways."

I launched my Confusion attack, and while the geodude shielded itself, the attack still hit perfectly. The geodude winced in pain, but it didn't look any less confident than before.

"Not bad," it said, "but you're going to need more than that to finish me off."

"Why don't you just shut up and watch me?"

I attacked once again, and I immediately knew I had won. I turned around to see the geodude lying there, its tough exterior beginning to crumble around where my attacks hit. There was no way the rock pokémon was able to fight back.

"Tch, not bad," Brock noted. He returned his geodude to its pokéball, then reached for the second pokéball at his waist. "...But are you ready for my next pokémon? This one won't be as easy. Go, onix!"

He released the pokémon from its pokéball, and where the geodude previously was, sat an unbelievably huge rock pokémon. I admit it was pretty intimidating, reaching the ceiling in height, and wearing a determined and unforgiving expression, much like Brock's.

Yes, it was intimidating. Was I too scared to fight? No.

"Rosie, I don't know about this..." said Grace nervously.

"Just watch me," I countered.

The arena was filled with onix's deep grumble, and the battle started.

I fluttered around, waiting for the onix to move first, but it seemed to be doing the same. It was watching me ever so carefully, defensively.

"You know, despite you having the type advantage over me, you're quite disadvantaged," I told the onix. It didn't say anything in return, but continued tracking me. I continued. "You're this huge, monstrous pokémon. You could easily crush me in seconds, but that's the thing- can you? I'm small and quick- you're huge and rather slow. You think you can catch me and finish me off before I escape and attack? Well, I won't let that happen."

I continued fluttering around, watching and waiting. Since the onix obviously wasn't going to move first, I decided to take action. I quickly flew behind it and out of its line of sight. I got as close as I dared, took a deep breath... and unleashed my attack.

The onix roared in pain, and I instantly retreated to a safer position away from it. I was prepared for an immediate backlash, but something wasn't right... the onix was swaying around unsteadily and grunting. Ah, I managed to confuse it. _ Perfect._

Even though I had the complete upper hand now, I was still wary of its power.

"Shake it off, onix, and tackle!" Brock yelled.

The onix finally seemed to have locked in on my location, and growled in anticipation. I froze, paralyzed with sudden fear. I could easily fly out of the way, but something about the huge onix crashing towards me kept me in my spot.

I shut my eyes, waiting for the crushing blow... but it never came.

There was a thunderous crash, and the entire gym shook in response. I heard Grace cry out in shock far below.

The sound of boulders below crumbling and shifting to stability filled the air, but soon afterwards there was a deafening silence. I dared not open my eyes.

Moments passed, and I couldn't handle the suspense any more. I took a deep breath and slowly opened my eyes. The onix lay motionless beside me, covered in rocks and dust, clearly knocked out.

_...What?_

"Hmph, it seems you got lucky with confusing my onix," Brock frowned. He then sighed in defeat, and jumped down from his boulder.

"Congratulations trainer, I am impressed by the power of your butterfree alone," he said, nodding towards me. I was still bewildered by the fact that I barely had to do anything; the onix simply happened to knock itself out.

"By the way, trainer, I never got your name," Brock asked.

"Oh- it's Grace... Grace Erickson," Grace stammered.

"Well congratulations, Grace. I present to you the Boulder Badge: the proof of your victory against me, and the first of the eight badges in the league. I also give you this TM, an item that you might find helpful along your journey. With it, you can teach your pokémon valuable moves- like this one can teach a pokémon the move Bide.

"However, I also have a word of advice for you, Grace. I have no doubt that your pokémon have the capabilities to take you far into your journey... But you need to stop holding yourself back. I could see that you have troubles trusting yourself, as well as your pokémon."

Grace looked crestfallen but accepting of his words. Brock sighed and visibly relaxed in return.

"Just keep your chin up, and anything can be possible. Good luck on your journey, Grace."

He offered a thumbs up, and Grace smiled back.

"Jeez, can we just get a move on already? We got the badge, now let's go," Damian grumbled.

"You're such a mood-killer," said Lynne, rolling her eyes.

The two continued bickering and raced each other out the door. Jakob and I stayed back, waiting for Grace.

"That was a great battle, Rosie," Jakob congratulated me. "I'm impressed with how you handled everything: with great power and impressive accuracy. Great plan," he said with a huge grin.

"Ah... Thanks Jakob," I replied with a flustered smile. I tried not to blush, and desperately hoped Damian couldn't see. He'd never let it down.

Thankfully the following silence didn't last too long. Grace, thanking Brock once again, finally started moving to catch up with us. She held her head high, but her eyes were still clouded with her usual doubt and worry. She quickly shook her head and snapped out of it, though.

"Brock said the only way to get to Cerulean City was to go through Mt. Moon," she told us. "It's not too far from here, and he said there are plenty of places that we can train and hopefully find some new team members. I'm... excited for what's ahead, are you guys?"

"Of course," replied Jakob. I nodded enthusiastically, then flew ahead to share the news to Damian and Lynne.

"Hey Rosie," Lynne greeted. "We finally moving forward?"

I relayed the message to the two rattatas. Lynne accepted the news with eagerness, but Damian, to no surprise, looked less than thrilled at the idea of finding new teammates.

I sighed and flew on ahead to avoid any inevitable squabbling between the two rattatas.

"You seem to forget that there are pokémon that are stronger than you, and that we would benefit from having a larger team," I heard Lynne snap. Damian argued something back, and I rolled my eyes.

_Those two... _I sighed.

With nearly a full team already, I hoped we would be ready for what faced us ahead. We survived the first gym, but how would we fare against the rest of the journey? Only time would tell...

Only time would tell.


End file.
